Purchasing a Laptop

Purchasing a Laptop

When purchasing a laptop these days, one can literally go through mazes and mazes of different options. There are so many laptops out there that finding the perfect one is a daunting task. Right now I find myself in college, and I commute from Philadelphia twice a week. Therefore, I was looking for a laptop that is light weight and portable. In addition, I wanted the laptop to be mobile, be able to connect with my iPhone via Bluetooth, and I needed it to have Microsoft Office for my school work.

Originally I wanted to go with a Mac. Everyone I speak to, and many consumer report articles rave about how it is relatively easy to use, and virus free. But after giving it a second thought I decided that it is also a little more expensive, and I have never gotten used to a Mac, so it would be easier for me to just go with a PC that I am used to. That's when I thought about going with a netbook.

When I started looking into netbooks I realized that these computers are primarily for surfing the internet. While I value the small size and the ability to go online where ever I find myself, I feel like since I am a college student the computer I need, needs to at least have Microsoft Office to enable me to do my school work. The computer I wanted is not meant to be my primary computer. I want to use it mostly for commuting to school and doing my school work on it. I also wanted the computer to have sufficient memory, I love to listen to music and want to put my itunes onto the laptop, therefore I need enough memory. Since I'll be working on a lot of documents for school on this computer, I need it to have enough memory, but I always have a USB storage device to save these files on, because I don't like school work to physically be on my computer. Another factor that was really important to me is the amount of USB 2.0 ports the computer has. Since I'll mostly be using the computer while on a bus and doing my work, I need to plug in my USB memory stick, charge my iPhone etc... I also wanted the computer to run on the most recent operating system, and that is Windows 7.

Another important factor for me was amount of battery life. Since I will be on the road with this computer a lot, it is important for me to know that this computer won't die on me. The computer I chose has an external DVD +/- RW drive. I loved this aspect because by the computer not having a built in DVD tray, it makes the computer a lot lighter. Since I am going to be using this computer mostly for travel and going to school, it isn't important for me to have a built in DVD bay. But I appreciate knowing that if I am home and I want to watch a DVD or whatever I can just plug it in and go. That is awesome. When I went online to both PCworld.com and shopper.cnet.com, I made sure to start out by looking at computers that would both fit my budget and have good reviews. The computer I